( June 13, 2016 )

The Emerging Technologies for Global Food Security conference, with the theme Mobilization to the Developing World, will be available for global audiences to watch LIVE via YouTube, anywhere in the world.

This international conference will bring 300 scientists, policy makers and industry representatives from 25 countries to Saskatoon, to discuss how to move innovations in agricultural research quickly, not only to the developed world, but to the developing world as well, in as little as four years from lab bench to field. The conference takes place June 14-16, 2016 at the Delta Bessborough Hotel, Saskatoon, SK and is organized by the Global Institute for Food Security, in partnership with Ag-West Bio and the ABIC Foundation.

Dr. Maurice Moloney, Executive Director and CEO of the Global Institute for Food Security, says as the global population reaches 9 billion in the next 30 years, the question of how to feed everyone, everywhere, every day, becomes everyone’s business. “This is a global discussion, if there ever was one. At this conference we’ve deliberately brought together the world’s preeminent researchers, thinkers and policy makers on agriculture and the developing world to discuss the problem.”

Conference speakers include well-known scientists and representatives from developing countries, such as Ruth Oniang’o and Zeyaur Khan, as well as researchers and policy advisors, including Mark Lynas, Barbara Burlingame, and Sarah Gurr. Industry speakers include Neal Gutterson from Dupont Pioneer and Anne Roulin from Nestle SA.

On June 14th, the public is invited to join an IQ2 Oxford-style debate moderated by Rex Murphy on the question “Is biotechnology necessary to deliver food security to 9 billion people?”

“We’re democratizing this conference so that even if you couldn’t make it to the conference – say you’re in an Ethiopian field or a lab in Norway – you can be part of what’s happening at Emerging Technologies; you can take in a panel session or hear a keynote speaker. This is one of those problems that we will need to work together to solve, and our aim is to start a truly global discussion here,” says Moloney.

Dr. Wilf Keller, president and CEO of Ag-West Bio, says this premier Emerging Technologies conference is an important step in developing the connections and conversations needed to find solutions to challenging issues. “This is indeed a ‘first world problem’; for myriad reasons we need to care about what is happening in the developing world and help where we can. Ag-West Bio is excited to collaborate with GIFS and the ABIC Foundation to offer this great conference, and for this to be the place where a meaningful global conversation takes root, and grows.”

Ag-West Bio Inc.

Funding for Ag-West Bio is provided by the Government of Canada and Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture through the Canadian Agriculture Partnership (CAP), a federal-provincial-territorial initiative.